advice on cooper s

hi all

the pest again, been back out today looking at Minis and have come across a Mini Cooper S Black 2004 04 plate for 12995, in a Toyota dealership was also at a BMW/Mini dealer and they have a similar car, similar spec a 2003 03 plate in Pale Blue metallic (unsure of name) for the same price, but they are offering me £500 less for my trade in.
My question is more with regards to the Cooper S. I was originally looking at the Cooper and then realised that for not much more money I could have the Cooper S. Its it really worth it, is it heavy on the petrol and do the above prices seem expensive? Any opinions for or against etc......all advice appreciated.

Once again thanks for reading

A Very Confused (hopefully soon to be) Mini Owner!!:I

Oh dear, this is going to get messy ;)

The pale blue is likely to have been electric blue. I won't comment on the price as I'm no mini price expert, but what you will find in the main is:

The S will be thirstier, and a fair bit more in insurance. The car is much quicker in a straight line, but cornering is much the same (some argue the Cooper is better handling as it's lighter at the front - personally I never really noticed much difference).

I had both a Cooper and an S. I felt more at home in the S as I like having the extra punch the car has - I always felt the Cooper wasn't quite quick enough for me. I felt it was money well spent, and there are less of them about.

On those cars in particular, black is a bit of a nightmare to keep clean, electric blue hides dirt much better. The 03 plate car may not be the face lifted model and would be worth checking - you get a few extras like the trip computer in the newer cars and it was 03/04 it changed (My S was an Electric Blue 03 and had just missed on the facelift - was a bit gutted! What was the plate on the 03 car? Wonder if it was my old one!)

you should shop around its abuyers market out there dealers will want to unload 03s as the warranty is up cherrished has limits to the warranty .There are loads out there right now because of the new model .Look long & hard before you leap , Me i would go for a face lift car & an s .I bought an 06 cooper new had it 5 months and ordered a new s for more power , so choose with the head not the heart

Pamela,

Good on you for getting straight back out there.

Prices are highly dependent on spec and probably mileage, I'm sure other can comment. The car from the Toyota dealer sounds like a MUCH better deal given that it is a year newer and after trade in £500 cheaper. What warranty does it come with compared with the MINI dealer one?

The S is a blast to drive. I haven't owned one but I think you would average about 28mpg whereras a Cooper would be about 35mpg. Insurance costs could be quite a bit more depending on your age etc.

If you are not desperate for the additional performance of the S, I would probably look for a newer Cooper for the same money.

Some points which may be of use...

MPG on Cooper - I got around 35mpg most of the time. I do quite a bit of townish/local driving, so that would be more if you are a motorway muncher.

MPG on Cooper S - bank on less than 30mpg, albeit this depends on your right foot. On some spirited runs, people have got less than 18mpg :eek:, however on the motorway and driving less than 70 some have got 36mpg.

Insurance - add half again from a cooper ins quote (ie £400 Cooper/ £600 Cooper) This is only my experience and just a guide..;)

whichever you buy will be great to drive, just depends how much power to really want...:D

thanks for all quick replies.

Ken, the 04 plate has BMW/Mini warranty until May 2007, then the garage has said they will add another 6mnth warranty onto that so I guess until Nov. The Mini dealership, although its an 03, would be offering a 'cherished' Mini so they are giving 12mnths. But the car is still a year older.
Re insurance, I have been online and the S would be an extra £141.00 per year for me compared to the Cooper, I'm 26 with 5 yars no claims.

Euan unsure of the plate on the blue car but it did have a scrape on the back bumper if that helps?

I would go for a facelift model is your budget can stretch to it... (wish you had been looking a couple of months ago, you could have had my 05 plate cooper for £12k...)

face lift models are easily recognised by the rear lights include reversing lights and the fog lamp is in the middle of the rear bumper...( instead of the reversing light with pre-face lift cars..)

cheers for the tip on the face lift models. I will check that out tomorrow. Have arranged to test drive the Cooper S at Toyota garage after work and will go from there.
mpg doesn't seem too bad then, I like a car to shift but I don't hammer them all the time. Insurance not as bad as I thought either.

Pamela
What do you drive at the moment?

If you can afford it, go for the S.....

The power will put a smile on your face everytime you put you foot down.

Quote:

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quote:Originally posted by pamelab21
Euan unsure of the plate on the blue car but it did have a scrape on the back bumper if that helps?

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Well, if it was my car it wasn't there when I had it ;)

Insurance seems good, mine went from 300 to 600 when I got in an S.

re: warrenty - you can always get your own one (VB has done this I think?)

Enjoy the test drive! I miss the whine of the supercharger!!!

Ian

Don't hold it against me... I have a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 SXI just now. Had it 7 months and its just not me. Previous to that though I had an Alfa 147 JTD Multijet, I loved that car but god did I use the warranty! I miss the power though and want something a bit different again.
I thought I could handle downgrading and saving some money but lifes too short!

Quote:

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quote:Originally posted by pamelab21

Ian

Don't hold it against me... I have a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 SXI just now. Had it 7 months and its just not me. Previous to that though I had an Alfa 147 JTD Multijet, I loved that car but god did I use the warranty! I miss the power though and want something a bit different again.
I thought I could handle downgrading and saving some money but lifes too short!

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I had a brand new Corsa the same as you and it lasted less than 6 months. Had to get rid of it was horrible to drive! You should try the mini they are great cars!
Good luck :)

Get yourself along to a local MINI dealer, you'll get better service and attention, plus, you'll be able to "find" your car quicker whilst letting teh dealer do all the running around.
You never know, a new car might just be in your grasp with all the deals that can be used ;)

I'd second BS on that - start at the MINI dealer as you should be able to get what you want from them. Granted, as you've already seen the trade in won't be as good, but you will at least get a 12 month warrenty and if there turns out to be anything wrong with the car, they are more likely to get it fixed (you'd hope!)

...but the MINI dealer will sell you a car than is a year older for the same price as well as giving you less for a trade in.

If you really like the car, haggle a bit more off it and insist on a full year warranty.

Toyota dealers have a decent reputation usually.

Since the car at Toyota garage is still under Mini warranty and they are giving you extra 6 months, no benefit in paying a dealer more money, and if its a newer car and an S , go for it.

Quote:

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quote:Originally posted by KenL

...but the MINI dealer will sell you a car than is a year older for the same price as well as giving you less for a trade in.

If you really like the car, haggle a bit more off it and insist on a full year warranty.

Toyota dealers have a decent reputation usually.

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Ah, the voice of reason :) all good points!